Tobi Talks February 2015 | Tobi vous jase février 2015

(LE MESSAGE EN FRANCAIS SUIT).

TOBI TALKS

Monthly musings from City Councillor Tobi Nussbaum

Welcome to the first of my monthly newsletters to share information, events and musings on issues touching on City Hall and Rideau-Rockcliffe ward. I will be adding features as I move forward, and welcome your feedback if there are topics you’d like to hear more about.

UPCOMING EVENTS...

You are invited to attend Budget Speak

Participate. Learn. Prioritize

Along with my fellow urban councillors, I wanted to invite you to participate in a new way to engage with the City of Ottawa’s budget, which will be tabled on February 4th. Budget Speak will provide you with an opportunity to: better understand the city budget process; explore and consider trade-off preferences; identify your priorities for the 2015 budget and the 2014-2018 Term of Council; and gain awareness of ways to engage in budget-making decisions.

We hope to see you on February 11th, 2015, 7:00 pm- 9:00 pm at the St. Laurent Complex – More details and RSVP HERE.

COMMITTEE/COUNCIL UPDATES

The Committee work is just beginning but I do have a few updates to share...

In an effort to support local businesses and improve walkability in our neighbourhoods, the City has developed a proposal to ensure zoning is not a barrier to the neighbourhood store model. If approved, the new zoning will ensure existing businesses, if sold, are not limited to existing uses. It would also allow certain designated properties to include a commercial use if the owners wished to initiate one. I look forward to hearing your feedback and I will be reaching out to individual Community Associations as well to seek views. Check out the details HERE.

Exit Strategy

On January 15th, 2015 there was a shooting in Overbrook. Coming on the heels of a spike in such incidents throughout the City in 2014, it is important to work to address concerns about safety and security. My statement on the day’s events can be found HERE. I am working with the Overbrook Community Association, the Ottawa Police Service and other active organizations to develop measures to help prevent such incidents from occurring in the future including through the development of a city-wide Exit Strategy to support those involved in criminal activity and gangs to leave.

Comprehensive Infill By-law

In an effort to be sensitive to the characteristics of mature neighbourhoods, city planning staff have released the second phase of the Infill by-law. Importantly, the gist of the changes are to ensure that new in-fill conforms to the existing character and look of our neighbourhoods. As well, lower permitted heights for new houses in some residential areas is proposed. The period of public comment is now open to provide feedback prior to the staff report to Planning Committee on April 14th, 2015. The proposal can be found HERE. Frequently Asked Questions HERE. And details on how to submit comments HERE. Please submit your comments before February 27, 2015.

Reflection:

Concerns about speeding, pedestrian safety and cut-through traffic was a major preoccupation of residents during my door-to-door campaigning this past fall. So I’ve been speaking with City staff about concrete traffic calming initiatives. Over the next months I will report on specific improvements I am pushing to institute. While I won’t be able to address all of the problem spots immediately, it will remain an area of focus over my term.

CITY WIDGET

The city of Ottawa has several online tools that help residents of Ottawa. One that I find particularly useful is...The Garbage and recycling collection calendar – with this you can find the Garbage collection schedule for your address and set up reminders via email, phone, twitter or your calendar.

For Your InformationPour votre information

CSST Construction Schedule

The CSST (Combined Sewage Storage Tunnel) project has been underway since March 2017, with work occurring in two locations in New Edinburgh: within Stanley Park (Sites 5A and 5B) and at the intersection of Queen Victoria and River Lane (Site 5C). An updated project schedule is posted every few weeks to help residents get a sense of what's in store.

Policy Options magazine published an article I wrote entitled “The Five I’s of Failed Urban Planning”. In it, I summarize the reasons for urban planning failure in five major themes: influence, inertia, illiteracy, inconsistency and interference. The article covers both the key reasons for urban planning failure and my suggested solutions for fixing them, building on my presentation at the 2016 Annual Conference of the Canadian Institution of Planners.